London-based Minimalux has a collection of products made of copper, silver, brass, and glass. Designer Mark Holmes, who also co-founded Established & Sons, has an eye for creating beautifully shaped objects that also serve a purpose. The items are simple, yet they are offered in premium materials making each one a minimal and sleek work of art. We pretty much want everything.

the several new cut out correspondence pieces are recreations of notes and letters the artist has received– enlarged with the negative space carved away from a single sheet of paper to reveal the original message.

from banana pianos to play-doh video game controllers, ‘makey makey’ transforms everyday objects to keyboard and mouse controls with a simple clip.

‘makey makey’ lets users turn everyday objects into touchpads, interfacing via the internet to use them as control panels,
musical instruments, or other devices. the system consists of a ‘makey makey’ board, set of alligator clips, and USB cable;
and it functions with any computer program or webpage that would normally be controlled by keyboard strokes or the mouse.
the unit can also be used as a simple arduino board for developers.

users need only select ordinary objects to function as their controls. this could range from a row of bananas, silverware, or coins
to be played as a keyboard; ordinary pencil drawings to use as a game controller; or alphabet soup noodles to make an
abbreviated keyboard, to use the examples that ‘makey makey’ designers jay silver and eric rosenbaum offer.
any electricity-conducting material will work (insulating materials need only be rubbed with food or water,
or topped with copper tape, to become conductive enough to function).

an alligator clip is applied to each object on one side, and to the ‘makey makey’ control board on the other,
connecting to the computer or laptop via USB. users specify what function each input object should have based
on what slot they clip it to on the ‘makey makey’ board (for example, left, right, spacebar, click).

‘makey makey’ is currently seeking funding on kickstarter, where units can be preordered for a 35 USD pledge.
the devices will be on exhibition at the maker faire bay area from may 19th-20th where it will also be beta-tested.

video introduction to the project on kickstarter

the device originated in research at MIT’s ‘lifelong kindergarten’ group at the MIT media lab.
circuits for the production model are being produced by colorado-based sparkfun.

Does anyone else ever fantasize about running away to some remote yet gorgeous landscape with a teeny tiny modern home, small enough to pull with a truck? We can’t be the only one, which is why we occasionally drool over the website, Tiny House Listings. One day. In the mean time we can’t help but find inspiration in one tiny modern home posted yesterday called the Leaf House based out of Canada.

“Leaf House is inspired by the philosophy of the owner-built home, and a creative approach towards designing and building. They feature full amenities and they are insulated for severe winter climates. Leaf House uses Forest Stewardship Certified (FSC) lumber, reclaimed materials, natural finishes, and ecologically friendly building products. Leaf House can also build carriage homes and fixed tiny houses, with a particular emphasis on natural building methods such as straw-clay, straw-bale, and timber-framing.” Oh yes, these are for SALE. More.

The latest Kickstarter success story comes from industrial designer Chris Thomson and cinematographer Ben Ryan, who have created a simple, portable, and clever device to help shooters regulate motion control. Called the Genie, it doesn’t take up much more space than the SLR body it’s meant to be attached to, and it allows the user to program in both rotating and panning features.

What most impresses us is the inherent hackability of the device: Because it can propel itself along by a provided rope, the camera can go anywhere you’re willing to string that rope, either using an optional track or something you whip up yourself, like a few pieces of wood nailed together or even a skateboard.

What’s also neat is that in the video below, you can see that they’ve prototyped it with the help of a MakerBot Cupcake:

Paris’s Outdoorz gallery is pleased to present the “Crash” bench by London-based designer Liliana Ovalle. The piece takes its form and name from a particularly lofty kind of natural disaster:

What happens when a force of nature changes the visual aspect of a design? Liliana Ovalle illustrates with finesse, that the unrehearsed, and uncontrolled can add impact both visually and emotionally to a design.

Crash is just such a piece. The sleek and perfect lines of the bench have been transformed by an unexpected impact which has imposed a new reality, a new way of being and created an outstanding piece of design.

Breg Hanssen has designed a new cabinet for Vij5 using Meike Meijer’s NewspaperWood (wood planks made from old newspapers). I really don’t like purple, but I am strangely drawn to this shade of pinkish lavender (at least that’s the color it’s appearing to be on my computer).

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